Gennadiy Golovkin strolling into the World Boxing presidency feels a bit surreal, even for boxing fans who’ve watched him crush blokes for over a decade. One minute he’s the quiet killer from Karaganda, the next he’s chairing a global federation in Rome, talking about restoring trust and steering Olympic boxing toward LA28. Not bad for someone who used to barely say a word at weigh-ins.
The twist? He was the only candidate who made it through the independent vetting process. Everyone else got clipped by the panel before the final ballot. Old-school boxing politics? Maybe. But this was the panel’s job, built to clean up the mess left behind by years of iffy governance.
Why Golovkin Ended Up As The Last Man Standing
GGG was elected by acclamation, no drama, no late-night campaigning. Just a room full of delegates nodding him in. He’ll serve a three-year term, taking over from Boris van der Vorst, who stepped aside quietly after completing his run.
Golovkin didn’t hide his intentions either. He said:
“It is a privilege to be elected as the new President of World Boxing. But this is just the beginning. Starting today, athletes will be at the heart of every decision we make. On the road to LA28, we will restore trust in Olympic boxing to secure our place in Brisbane and beyond.”
That’s a big promise, especially when the Olympic future of boxing has been hanging by a thread for years.
The Power Shifts Behind The Scenes
The Rome Congress also elected Ryan O’Shea (Canada) to another term as Vice President after he secured 57 percent of the vote over Thailand’s Chaiwat Chotima. For the Executive Board seats, Germany’s Michael Muller and Japan’s Tatsuya Nakama came out on top of a six-person contest.
These four winners join a beefy board that now includes Vice Presidents Matt Holt and Dinah Glykidis, plus confederation presidents and committee chairs from across the globe. In short, the room’s getting crowded and everyone’s got their own agenda.
Dinah Glykidis summed up the Congress mood neatly:
“Congress is the ultimate authority of World Boxing and to have so many of our members be able to participate in it today and express their views… is a positive sign that World Boxing is continuing to deliver on its commitment to transparency and rigorous governance.”
Whether transparency holds up over time? Different story.
World Boxing’s To-Do List Just Got Bigger
Panama will host the 2026 Congress. They’ve ratified 49 new national federations. They’ve folded the Sex Eligibility Policy into the competition rules. Accounts for 2025 are approved. The 2026 provisional budget is set. Bureaucracy is alive and well.
And remember: the IOC granted provisional recognition in February 2025. That’s provisional, not permanent. Golovkin’s job now is less about knockouts, more about paperwork, diplomacy and convincing Olympic bosses that boxing belongs in LA28 and Brisbane 2032.
GGG running a world federation is wild. The man barely showed emotion after knocking out half of the division, and now he’s expected to charm delegates and keep politics tidy. Still, he’s respected globally, rarely involved in nonsense, and carries enough weight to calm down the usual Olympic boxing chaos. If he keeps his promise to prioritise athletes, he might actually steady the ship. But if the political sharks smell blood, he’ll find out very quickly this is tougher than any middleweight title fight.
Executive Board (as confirmed)
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President: Gennadiy Golovkin (KAZ)
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Vice Presidents: Ryan O’Shea (CAN), Matt Holt (GBR), Dinah Glykidis (AUS)
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Executive Board Members: Michael Muller (GER), Victorico Vargas (PHI), Tatsuya Nakama (JPN), Marcos Candido de Brito (BRA)
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Athlete Representative Chair: Richard Torres Jr. (USA)
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Asian Boxing President: Lars Brovil (DEN)
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Oceania Boxing President: Beulah Daunakamakama (FJI)
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Panamerican Boxing President: Elise Seignolle (USA)
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Sport & Competition Chair: Hernan Salvo (ARG)
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Medical & Anti-Doping Chair: Dr Armando Sanchez (USA)
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Finance & Audit Chair: Julia Felton (AUS)
‘Restoring trust’ sounds nice but what does that even mean really? Sounds like something people say when they don’t got no real plan or idea of what they doing 🤔.
People say GGG is respected but respect doesn’t fix problems 🙄. The sport needs help and just liking someone ain’t enough reason to give them this big job.
@Amanda69 I agree! It’s not high school where popularity wins you votes 😤. Boxing got real issues and we need smart leaders not just famous names.
If boxing’s future at the Olympics depends on paperwork and meetings, then why put a fighter in charge? They should’ve picked someone who knows how to do that stuff better than punch people!
I don’t get why they chose someone who never really talked before as a leader now 🤷♀️. Like, how is he gonna speak up for athletes when he barely used to speak at all?
How come nobody else made it past that panel? That ain’t fair at all. If it’s just him on the ballot then people didn’t even get a real choice, they just had to go with him.
This whole thing smells fishy if you ask me 😒. Only one person passed the vetting? That sounds like they just wanted Golovkin in charge no matter what. Politics is always dirty.
I don’t think a boxer like Golovkin should be running no big organization. Just because he was good in the ring don’t mean he knows how to handle all this paper stuff and meetings. It’s a different game now and I don’t trust it’ll be done right.
Yeah exactly! Being tough in the ring ain’t the same as being smart in business. Just cause folks like him don’t mean he got what it takes to run things 🥴.